Part II: Office Organization Tools
We’ve gone over the importance of de-cluttering your space, syncing your employees’ schedules and keeping a magnetic glassboard around to keep projects and ideas all in one place, but there are hundreds of ways to keep your office organized.
Hideaway Drawer – It’s extremely important to de-clutter your office and to throw away any trash, irrelevant and outdated items, but what about those mailings, bills and receipts that may be important? One good trick for an organized office is to have a hideaway drawer for items you plan on getting to later. The hideaway drawer offers the same effect as de-cluttering; it keeps your space as clean as possible, which helps promote order and timeliness. Imagine if your desk is filled with mail, paperwork and items you plan on getting to later in the week. The visual clutter helps distract you from the important, or even more urgent matters, since a new item on your desk make a visual impact. Now imagine stuffing tomorrow’s work in a hideaway drawer; when a task comes across your desk, it’s the only item that gets your attention. While hideaway drawers are great for the beginner, it’s extremely important to check it every morning, to make sure you haven’t stashed away important deadlines or unpaid bills. Revisiting this drawer daily helps to keep it in the back of your mind, where it belongs.
Employee Notes – Note-taking is extremely important in a variety of industries; customer service, merchandising, filling orders, pretty much anything with deadlines and reminders. While note-taking is a very important function in many people’s jobs, each person seems to approach taking notes differently. Some people like carrying around a personal notepad, whereas others keep a stack of post-its within reach. Poll your employees and make sure you have adequate notebooks, post-its and pads of paper available for note-taking.
Phone Board – Customer service industries run into a lot of phone calls throughout the day. Sometimes they come at the perfect time, when you have a paper and pen ready, and you can take notes, phone numbers and information. Other times, a phone call can come in the midst of chaos, where no writing utensils can be found and when important details can be forgotten. One great organization tool is a glassboard for phone messages. Custom glass whiteboards can be made to size, and can even be back-painted to blend into a wall or stand out. Having a message board right next to your phone can ensure that employees are able to take messages and phone numbers quickly without searching for a pen, pencil or whatever writing utensil they can find. Furthermore, you can affix a dry erase marker to the board. It may sound small, but your clients and customers will appreciate your office being prepared and organized and will give them confidence that they will be receiving a phone call back or a response to their questions and concerns.
About Clarus Glassboards: Clarus is the leading manufacturer and innovator of glass whiteboards and glass visual display products. For more information about clear dry erase boards and our other glass architectural systems, please call 888-813-7414 or visit www.clarusglassboards.com.
